Ethernet

Ethernet is a large and diverse family of frame-based computer networking technologies for local area networks (LANs). The name comes from the physical concept of the ether. It defines a number of wiring and signaling standards for the physical layer, two means of network access at the Media Access Control (MAC)/Data Link Layer, and a common addressing format.
Ethernet has been standardized as IEEE 802.3. Its star-topology, twisted pair wiring form became the most widespread LAN technology in use from the 1990s to the present, largely replacing competing LAN standards such as coaxial cable Ethernet, token ring, FDDI, and ARCNET. In recent years, Wi-Fi, the wireless LAN standardized by IEEE 802.11, has been used in addition to or instead of Ethernet in many installations.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethernet

A Brief History of Ethernet

The first experimental Ethernet system was invented in 1972 by Metcalfe and his Xerox PARC colleagues to interconnect the Xerox Alto. Metcalfe's first experimental network was called the Alto Aloha Network. It was changed to "Ethernet" in 1973 to make it clear that the system could support any computer.

Charles Spurgeon's Ethernet Web Site provides extensive information about Ethernet